Rage of the Diamond's Eye (The Guildsmen Series Book 1)

by Becker, Shawn

  Tienn’s brows lowered dangerously, his eyes hard slits. This was just greed and malice overriding common decency. This thief has placed hundreds, if not thousands, in danger – not to mention the lives lost and damage done to river towns along the Tebis’non. And still, this ignoble villain chooses to prize wealth over all.

  “Who is this person and where can I find him?” Tienn’s voice came out as a growl.

  “Yes, you would like it if I told you, hm?”

  The tone of the Magi had changed from aloof indifference to suspicious anger in seconds.

  “Did your master convince you to try to talk that information out of me?” The Shadow Magi leaned forward over the back edge of the couch. The Fire Magi watched, his interest peaked, hoping he would get to watch the Draaken fight.

  “My master,” Tienn said, not understanding.

  “Your master: Sajiix Mirhan. He must surely be here by now, hoping to find the Purestone so he can supplant me as head of the Amethyst Order!”

  “I assure you, Sajiix is not my master,” Tienn said through clenched teeth. “I do not believe you realize the severity of this situation. Chancellor Tevic has sent a squad of Palidiamos here to recover that diamond before you or the Zynnashans do.”

  The Fire Magi laughed again, this time with a brutal excitability. “I look forward to that particular disagreement.”

  “We will take the diamond when the moment is right, Master Draanyr. The thief will be punished and I will return the artifact to the Zynnashans.”

  Tienn couldn’t help but notice the emphasis the Shadow Magi placed on ‘I’. But, at least he wanted to do the right thing, even if it were the wrong way to go about it.

  “It is not my place to step in between an age-old feud, but you cannot come to blows with House Diathanos over this,” Tienn urged. “I believe it is what Chancellor Tevic wants.”

  “We will not be the ones to swing the first blow, Master Draanyr,” the Shadow Magi said not unkindly. “But, we will return the compliment if we must.

  “I will also not allow Sajiix Mirhan to jeopardize my mission in returning the Purestone. I am the head of the Amethyst Order; I am his superior. Be sure to tell him this when you see him.”

  Tienn shook his head, disgusted and disheartened by the manner in which the Magi viewed the entire situation. Heaving a sigh, he prepared to give his farewells when a Diamond Magi burst through the door, his youthful face full of excitement and triumph.

  “I have found it, Dhama Shek!” he said breathlessly. “He keeps it in the warehouse district!”

  “Say nothing more, Jordyn,” the Shadow Magi warned. “Our business is not for outsiders to hear.”

  The Diamond Magi blinked as he suddenly realized Tienn was standing in the room. His blue eyes took in the Draaken’s skin tone, his padded leather armor, and the rapier hanging on his hip with an uneasy stare Tienn recognized all too well.

  “I have heard all I need to hear,” Tienn said, moving for the door. “I hope that your political maneuvering does not cost the lives of innocents, Shadow Magi.”

  Tienn quickly exited the room, his footfalls fading down the hall and to the stairs.

  Margas glanced at Jordyn as he fidgeted with the seams of his white robes. “Do you know the location of the Purestone?”

  “I do, Dhama Shek.”

  “Then lead us there, Jordyn,” Margas commanded. “The Draaken will undoubtedly inform Sajiix of its general position. It is time we take the initiative and remove the diamond from the thief’s clutches.”

  Erak, the Fire Magi, jumped from the couch with an enthusiastic grin. “The paladins won’t take kindly to us taking the diamond,” he said.

  “We are not keeping it,” Margas quipped. “But, if they attempt to take the Purestone from us or thwart our efforts in warding off the Zynnashans, then we will deal with them head on.”

  ***

  Ayce took the side streets of Fhaalvak, avoiding the main roads now clogged with the city’s inhabitants. Most of them were now in clusters, standing and gossiping near the southern portions of town. Their presence made it difficult to trace the two young women they had met earlier that morning. Ayce was able to track by smell – another gift from his lycanthropy – even in his human form. Mystrianna and Tair’Lianne had distinctive scents. The red head smelled of steel, sweat, and anger; an anger as red as the molten metal that formed her sword. That one was on a mission of death. The darker one smelled of lilacs, leather, and fear; fear not of her situation or for herself, but fear for her friend. Tair’Lianne could sense that the anger Mystrianna was exuding was going to take her away.

  Now, however, all he could smell was fear from the people of Fhaalvak.

  Ayce had backtracked for a third time when he saw Dorn approaching from the west. He swallowed the anger that surged forth over the Thaarakan’s betrayal to the Guild. There would be time for that later. He waved at Dorn, who waved back as he neared.

  “Where are the girls?” Ayce asked him.

  “They lost me in rows of long houses,” he answered in his thick dialect.

  “Long houses,” Ayce wondered briefly before realizing the Thaarakan meant warehouses. “They went into the warehouse district near the river gate?”

  “By river gate, yes,” Dorn nodded.

  He was lying.

  Ayce remembered walking alongside the warehouse district and it smelling like rotting fish and stagnant river water. Dorn smelled nothing like that. He smelled like incense, the kind used in temples.

  Dorn had already informed the paladins!

  “All right,” he said, controlling the rage building inside him that wanted to burst forth and rip that fake grin off of his face. “You head back to the town gate and meet with Tienn. He’ll need you there. I will search for the girls.”

  “I search with you.”

  Ayce turned to see that Dorn was still smiling, but his eyes were set in grim determination. “No, Dorn,” Ayce commanded. “Tienn will want you at his side once the Zynnashans attack. Besides, I can track them better without you. Now, go.”

  The resolute look in the Thaarakan’s eyes faded, replaced with indecision. He was obviously instructed to stay near anyone who would be close to the Purestone, but he was also given a direct order by a superior Guildsman. If Dorn disobeyed Ayce, he would be giving away his position as a spy.

  “You find them,” Dorn said, indicating the two women, “you come back and find us. We help get diamond.”

  “Sure thing, pal,” Ayce said, patting the Thaarakan on the shoulder harder than normal. “Be sure to report to Tienn on what is happening.”

  Dorn nodded and stomped away, his big lumbering gait causing those in front of him to scatter or risk being trampled by the giant.

  “Of course, you’d better hope Tienn has more restraint than I do,” Ayce whispered, not looking back.

  ***

  Baris Malagotta pushed the tin plate forward, his sides bursting from the amount of food he consumed. Sarah was across from him, watching him eat at the small table that sat along the wide window of the Golden Harvest Inn. Baris normally didn’t sit here, but since they were the only ones in the establishment, the mercenary didn’t need to concern himself with whoever came through the door. The table afforded him a look through the window, and he noticed the shadows shrinking as the sun neared its zenith. It was time to leave. He yawned and stretched languidly, his eyes straying toward Sarah’s ample bosom. “Wish I could stay longer,” he said wistfully. “But I have business to attend to.”

  “Are you sure that’s what you want?” Sarah cooed. She leaned forward, nearly driving all sense of constraint out of him.

  “You have no idea what I want, girl.”

  She stood slowly, moving gracefully around the table until she stood nearly on top of him. Gathering her skirt, Sarah sat upon the table, placing her right foot upon the arm of his chair. “I think I know,” she breathed.

  Baris stood, knocking the chair backward and reached forward,
crushing her to him. She tasted like berries and soap, her lips as soft as crushed velvet. He kissed her hard, pushing her down upon the table. She offered no resistance, kissing him just as fiercely. His hands groped and explored her, eventually sliding down to her arms and the bracelet she wore on her wrist.

  He opened his eyes briefly to view the bauble she wore, wondering what she would like once he received his riches for delivering the Purestone to House Diathanos. The amethysts glittered alongside the silver ingots in between.

  In one fluid motion, he lifted Sarah back to a sitting position, his hands woven in her thick hair. She moaned slightly when he tugged his hands free. Baris pulled away regretfully, his lips lingering over hers. Sarah sighed as he turned away to adjust his clothing and slid off the table to stand behind him.

  “Must you go?” she pouted.

  He turned, grasped her shoulders, spun her around, and enveloped her in his sinewy arms. He kissed the back of her neck, his fingers trailing up and down her arms. “I must,” he answered impassively. “I can’t let anything distract me...not even Sajiix’s apprentice.”

  Before she could reply, Baris had his arms braced around her neck, squeezing tightly. She squeaked once, her hands flailing at his brutal attack. She kicked forward, knocking the table over and pushing the pair into the center of the taproom. Her mouth stretched open, trying to scream out and draw breath in at the same time. Sarah struggled to free herself a bit more before her eyes rolled back and her body went limp.

  Baris lowered her gently to the ground, kissing her cheek. As he rose, Sarah’s hair went from brown to golden blond. Her face and height changed slightly, but she still looked close to whoever Sarah might be or might have been.

  “Clever Magi,” he whispered, adjusting his sword belt. “You’re lucky I have a soft spot for women.”

  Baris knew he had to move quickly. If his hunch was correct, he had very little time before his entire plan came to ruin…all thanks to a pretty barmaid and her overprotective “uncle”.

  29

  It took Myst three swings to break the chain holding Lynth’s paws over his head. When the link finally snapped, the Zyn Beast casually shoved Myst aside as though she were a child and tore open the front of his robes, exposing a triangular medallion lined with amethysts. The creature spoke arcane words of magic and the medallion began to glow with a smoldering violet fire. Myst watched anxiously, her heart constricting as she watched Tair trying not scream within the tumult of the yellow cyclone.

  Tair’s body suddenly vanished, fading from view as Lynth finished his incantation. The cyclone wavered for a moment, leaning over the center of the warehouse as though it were drunk and then collapsed with a brief gale that sent dust and a few crates flying.

  “What did you do? Where did she go?” she demanded, adjusting her grip upon her uncle’s sword.

  “She is safe,” the beast snarled. “I had to deceive the trap into believing she was no longer there.” With a wave of a razor-tipped paw, Lynth canceled his spell, allowing Tair to reappear upon the wooden floor. She lay facedown from where she had fallen, her arms curled underneath her.

  Myst ran to her, diving to her knees and dropping the sword instantaneously as she cradled Tair’s head. “Please be okay,” she murmured. “Please be okay.”

  “I am,” came a barely audible reply. “I’m just tired of everything trying to pull me apart as though I’m their rag doll.”

  Tair gave a weak smile to her friend and then craned her neck to see Lynth, who was pacing around the area in a very restless state. “Thank you, fur-face.”

  Lynth grumbled at her, his ears twitching in the shadows cast by the lantern.

  “Where’s the diamond?” Myst asked him. “I know you can sense it.”

  “I do not know,” he replied irritably. “I can sense the Purestone all around me, but not focused in one place enough to pinpoint it. It is very distracting.”

  Myst slowly pulled Tair to her feet, making sure she was steady before bending down to retrieve her uncle’s sword. Her eyes swept the room, focusing on everything. “It has to be here,” she said determinedly. “The thief wouldn’t have set up his traps here without having a good reason.”

  “Agreed,” the beast snipped.

  “I am taking the diamond,” she suddenly told him.

  Lynth froze, his bright golden eyes focused upon her. “They will not allow you to keep it.”

  “I don’t want to keep it,” Myst said with a firm shake of her head. “I want that lion thing to know I have it so that he will have to face me. Once I have avenged my uncle, then they can have their diamond back.”

  “You never said anything about giving it back,” Tair exclaimed, rubbing her left shoulder.

  “Havaas killed your uncle?”

  “If that’s its name, then yes,” Myst replied tersely. “And I plan to return the favor.”

  “Why would you do this?” Lynth asked her in earnest. “You will most certainly die. I see no logical conclusion in this action.”

  “I don’t expect a Zyn Beast to understand emotion,” she said with a sullen glare.

  Lynth twitched his whiskers. “This is a rash action. It would be more suitable for us to return the diamond, thus forcing the strike unit to return to Zynnasha. I am quite sure once Havaas has been released from the Purestone’s influence, he would be happy to make reparations.”

  “Reparations,” Myst shouted.

  “Oh, here we go,” Tair whispered, taking a step backward.

  Myst felt the bile in her mouth rise as she stared at the creature before her. She could tell that the Zyn Beast acknowledged her anger, but the look on its black-furred face showed her that it didn’t know why she was so upset. She took a step forward and jabbed her finger into the beast’s muscular chest. “No amount of money or gifts can bring back my uncle,” she said with a voice coming from deep within. “And the fact that you even entertained that idea tells me that you Zyn Beasts think nothing of…”

  Lynth held up a paw in warning and hissed air through his sharp fangs. Myst had heard it too. It was the creaking of wood, just behind Tair, as though someone were sneaking right behind her. Tair had heard it as well, for she had leapt forward with a curse, drawing her two daggers.

  “What was that?” she asked, her breath coming in startled gasps. No one was there. Only their flickering silhouettes upon the stacks of crates.

  “We are not alone,” Lynth purred.

  The beast put its paws forward, closing his eyes. Lynth took a deep breath and suddenly snapped his eyes back open. “Invisible you may be, but I can still catch your scent, Sajiix Mirhan.”

  The air shimmered before them and just behind from where Tair had stood, a man popped into being. Myst knew him immediately as the drunk who had stumbled by them earlier outside, but, even that changed just as quickly. The slovenly clothes melted into robes of violet and dark purple. The face became thinner, healthier. The man’s ebony hair grew longer, nearly touching his broad shoulders. He wore a fine cloak of black with embroidered bands of purple along the edges. On his right hand was a finely wrought silver ring with a huge amethyst placed in its center. The man’s green eyes flashed dangerously as he smiled at the Zyn Beast, although Myst thought it was more of a smirk.

  “I see you sense the Purestone’s location, as well?” His voice was cocky, arrogant. And Myst also thought she sensed a twinge of anger there.

  “Yes, but I cannot pinpoint it,” Lynth said, scratching his ear.

  “That is because its captor has hidden it beneath us. It rests in an iron box under the churning waters of Th’baerne,” the Magi explained. “Quite ingenious, really, as the waters spread the focus of the diamond out into the lake, fogging it from anyone who can sense it from its actual location.”

  “And how do you know this?” Lynth asked with a raised eyebrow.

  “I have been here for a few days, playing the part of innkeeper and watching anyone new that came into town. I knew the moment I saw
Malagotta that he was the one that had stolen the Purestone.”

  “He has fallen far from the Guild’s graces.”

  “The Guild closed. Baris took the road offered to him,” Sajiix corrected.

  “Do you mean to say that the one who stole this diamond was once a Guildsman?” Myst said with a rising voice that matched her growing anger.

  Lynth nodded. “He was,” he answered simply. “How did you know he would come here to Fhaalvak?” he asked the Magi.

  Sajiix smiled. “Chancellor Tevic gave that away when he told me he was sending Protector D’ghelle off to collect it. Once I escaped, it was a simple matter of plotting where the paladin was heading.”

  “Escaped?”

  “Tevic saw fit to imprison me for simply knowing that the Purestone had been spirited away to Kaalmoore,” Sajiix said darkly, “which leads me to believe that he is responsible for this entire event.”

  “He has gone mad!” Lynth cried. “Surely he knows the repercussions of such an action. Does he think the Highlord would willingly give up such a sought-after prize?”

  “I don’t think he cares, old friend,” Sajiix admitted. “He wants the Purestone, no matter what the cost. My fear is wondering what he will do with it once he has it.”

  Myst, listening intently to the conversation, nudged Tair with her foot and looked meaningfully at her other dagger and then at Uncle Teeg’s sword. She then motioned her head toward the Zyn Beast and the Magi.

  Tair suddenly understood and shook her head fervidly. “No,” she mouthed silently.

  Myst only nodded, a look of harsh determination covering her face. This was it. If she and Tair were going to get out of Fhaalvak with the diamond – they had to act now.

  Twisting the blade in her hands, Myst brought it up to the Magi’s chest; while Tair reluctantly aimed her dagger to throw into the Zyn Beast’s heart should it move to attack her friend. “I’m sorry to interrupt,” Myst said through clenched teeth. “But I need you to retrieve that diamond for me before anyone else tries to lay claim upon it.”